New Technique Could Be a Breakthrough for Motility Research

In this study, we showed a mitigation of these common problems with optogenetic muscle control,” said Hugh Herr, who led the research team and heads the Media Lab’s Biomechatronics group. “This has great promise for the development of solutions for patients suffering from debilitating conditions like muscle paralysis.” The group's research paper was published in the Dec. 13 issue of Nature Communications. Doctors already use electrical nerve stimulation to treat patients with spinal cord injury, and to improve muscle conditioning in people with muscular degenerative diseases. The downside of electrical stimulation is that it can quickly fatigue muscles and is difficult to target precisely. That's why scientists like Srinivasan and Maimon are looking for alternative methods of nerve stimulation. Optogenetic stimulation relies on nerves that have been genetically engineered to express light-sensitive algae proteins called opsins. These proteins control electrical signals such as nerve impulses — essentially, turning them on and off — when they are exposed to certain wavelengths of light. Using mice and rats engineered to express these opsins in two key nerves of the leg, the researchers were able to control the up and down movement of the rodents’ ankle joint by switching on an LED that was either attached over the skin or implant...
Source: MDDI - Category: Medical Devices Authors: Tags: R & D Source Type: news